Fluent material dispensing device having rotary trap chambers with radially movable ejector

ABSTRACT

A device is provided for dispensing metered quantities of material and includes a wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of the wheel, a plunger within each of the chambers, and means for selectively adjusting the extent of radial movement of the plungers within the chambers so as to permit selective control of the amount of material dispensed from each chamber.

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2 5)v)) mmm 2 l\ 9ll.l 233387 2//// 4 22245 5 22274 4 222 7 7 HAVING ROTARY TRAPCHAMBERS WITH Primary Examinersamuel Coleman' RADIALLY MOVABLE EJECTOR Attorney-Anderson; Luedeka, Fitch, Even & Tabin 19Claims,5DrawingFigs.

A device is provided for dispensing metered tities of material and includes a wheel defining circumaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of the wheel, a plunger within each of the charm and means for selectively adjusting the extent of radial movement of the plungers within the chambers so as to permit selective control of the amount of material dispensed from u T m b a m t n I w a m 75 X M HW un9l 3 un "2 mm b m 1M S m m 2& m m 1 m m% m m m M A u 7 .IP. n 0 C mmm m n A m n 3 MTG. BS mum .MD C m m3 R M. u 3

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Patented May 11, 19 71 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 emon D E. MILLER ATTYS.

} I R LRK Patented May 11, 19 71 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ROLAND E. MILLER Patented May 11, 1971 3,578,217

3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR ROLAND E. MILLER The present invention relates to metering devices in which material is first placed into a moving cavity at one location and subsequently ejected from the cavity at one location and subsequently ejected from the cavity at a second location. The invention is particularly directed to the use of such devices in packaging apparatus.

In the packaging of pliable and extrudable form-retaining products, examples of which are cream cheese and butter, one approach which has been found advantageous is to place a quantity of the product on a wrapper and to then fold the wrapper around the product. Preferably, the product is deposited on the wrapper in the form of a rectangular print or block which provides packages having well defined and uniform shape.

Apparatus have been proposed which include a rotating drum or wheel defining chambers extending inwardly from its periphery. Each chamber carries a piston or plunger which reciprocates within the chamber. When the chamber reaches a filling station containing a hopper or the like, the plunger is withdrawn to vacate the chamber and permit it to receive a quantity of the material to be packaged. When the chamber tended to eject the material and deposit it onto a moving conveyor or wrapper.

In the packaging of many products, it is desirable to control the weight of the print very precisely so as to assure that the quantity packaged meets the specifications stated on a preprinted wrapper without, however, exceeding the specified weight by more than a controlled amount. The cross-sectional area of the chambers of the wheel and the length of the stroke of the plungers, i.e., the extent to which the plungers are withdrawn in vacating the chambers, determine the volume of material dispensed by any one plunger in each stroke. In the dispensing of material of. constant and uniform density, the diameter of the chamber and the length of the stroke of the plunger necessary to provide a print of given weight can be determined in advance and the apparatus constructed accordingly. More often than not, however, the material being packaged is not of constant density and its density may in fact vary from time to time with changes in a variety of factors. For example, the density of a cream cheese mix may vary from batch to batch with the fat content of the milk used, the free moisture present in the mix, and the amount of moisture absorbed by the curd. Thus, it is desirable to be able to very aecurately control the size of the prings produced. Preferably, adjustments necessary to effect these slight changes can be made while the device is operating. It may also be desirable to significantly alter the size of the prints so as to make it possible to produce prints of different stated weights, e.g., 3 02., 5 02., etc.

It is a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved metering device.

Another object of the invention is to provide a metering .device in which selective control over the quantity of material dispensed is possible.

An additional object of the invention is to provide an improved packaging apparatus incorporatingan improved metering device.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent with reference to the following description and the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

FIG. I is a fragmentary elevational view, partially broken away, of a metering device showing various of the features of the invention, certain elements of the device being omitted and others being shown in phantom for ease of understanding;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional end elevational view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a enlarged fragmentary elevational view of a portion of the device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the portion of the device shown v in FIG. 3, taken along line 44 mm FIG; and AND subsequently reaches the discharge station, the plunger is ex- FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of the portion of the device shown in FIG. 3.

, Very generally, there is illustrated in the drawings a device 10 which includes a large wheel or drum 12 mounted for rotation about a horizontally disposed shaft 14 suitably mounted and connected to a power source (not shown) for rotational movement. The wheel 12 defines l0 cavities or chambers 16 which extend radially inwardly from the periphery of the wheel and each chamber carries within it the head of a piston or plunger 18 caused to reciprocate within the chamber.

. A stop 20 defining a shoulder 21 is provided for each plunger and is engageable by the plunger to limit the extent of movement of the plunger inwardly of the chamber, thereby limiting the effective capacity of the chamber. An adjusting knob 22 is provided for each chamber and is suitably connected to the stop 20 so that, when rotated, it effects a repositioning of the shoulder 21 so as to permit a selective variation in the length of stroke of the plunger and, hence, in the effective capacity of the chamber. A hand wheel 24 is provided which is suitably connected to the stops 20 of all of the plungers and, when rotated, causes a change in the effective capacity of all the chambers simultaneously.

Thus, rotation of a knob' 22 adjusts the stroke of one individual plunger while rotation of the hand wheel 24 adjusts the stroke of all plungers.

As the wheel 12 rotates, it brings each chamber 16 beneath a hopper 26 positioned above the wheel. The plunger 18 within each chamber is withdrawn while the chamber is in communication with the interior of the hopper, thereby drawing material from the hopper into the chamber. Baffles 28 are provided in the hopper to direct the material into the chamber in a uniform manner. Continued rotation of the wheel brings each filled chamber to a discharge position beneath the shaft 14. As the chamber nears this position, the plunger 18 is extended so as to eject the material therefrom in the form of a print. When the material being handled has a tacky consistency, such as cream cheese, the print clings to the plunger face and is shaved therefrom by a wire 30 and falls upon a wrapper sheet (not shown) carried by a conveyor 32. If, for any reason, a wrapper sheet is not positioned on the conveyor to receive the print, or is displaced from its intended position, the wire 30 is withdrawn so as not to shave the print from the plunger face. The pring thus remains on the plunger face and passes upwardly with continued rotation of the wheel until it is engaged by a blade 34 which scrapes it from the plunger face and causes it to be deposited upon a scrap conveyor 36.

More specifically, the wheel is in the form of a large casting and, in one preferred embodiment, has an outer diameter of approximately 30 inches. The wheel includes a hub 38 (FIG. 2) provided with a'central opening which receives the shaft 14, to which it is keyed. Ribs 40 extend radially outwardly from the hub 38 to a cylindrical rim 42 which defines the outerperiphery of the wheel. The rim is provided with 10 openings,

one of which is positioned intermediate each set of adjacent ribs 40. The openings are of generally rectangular configuration, as can be seen from the configuration of the plungers, shown in FIGS. 3-5. The wheel casting also includes a backing plate 46, which extends radially outwardly from the hub 38 (FIG. 2) in generally perpendicular relation to the axis of rotation of the wheel 12 at one end of the hub. The plate 46 is generally continuous, i.e., solid, except for the provision of a slot 48 intermediate each pair of adjacent ribs 40, each slot serving as a guideway which receives a portion of one of the plungers 18. In FIG. I, only one plunger is shown so that the slots 48 will be visible.

The outer peripheral portion of the backing plate 46 defines the rear wall of each chamber 16. The opposite or front wall of each chamber is defined by a flange 50 which extends radially lip 52 engageable by a portion of a sealing shoe 54 of the hopper 26, as hereinafter described. The end wall of each chamber 16 are defined by a pair of circumferentially spaced webs 56 (FIG. 1) which extend radially inwardly from the rim 42 and span the backwall 46 and flange 50. The webs 56 are disposed in parallel relation to a diametral plane passing through the center of the adjacent chamber and therefore in-. eluding the longitudinal axis of the chamber.

Each chamber 16 is therefore defined by the backwall 46, the flange 50, and a pair of webs 56. All of these elements are an integral part of the wheel casting. Each chamber communicates with the periphery of the wheel through an opening in the rim 42 and is closed at its lower end by the face of the plunger 18 carried within the chamber As previously mentioned, a plunger 18 is carried within each of the chambers 16 and the extent of the stroke of each plunger is determined by the stop 20 which can be repositioned individually relative to the stops of the other plungers byrotation of the knob 22 or repositioned simultaneously with the stops of the other plungers by a hand wheel 24.

More specifically, and as seen best in FIG. 2, there is mounted on the hub 38 of the wheel 12 a camming chamber member 58 which includes a generally cylindrical sleeve 60 and a flange 62 provided with arms 64 which project axially of the wheel (toward the right in FIG. 2). The sleeve 60 is keyed to the hub so as to rotate therewith but is also slidable axially along the hub. In this regard, the outer surface of the sleeve is threadedto enable the sleeve to be received into the internally threaded flange 66 of the hand wheel 24 which is carried by and freely rotatably on the wheel shaft 14. The hand wheel 24 is limited in its movement toward the outer end of the shaft 14 (Le, in its movement toward the left in FIG. 2) by a retainer 68 which in turn is held in place against axial movement along the shaft by a locking pin (not shown) which cooperates with a slot 70 in the shaft. Thus, the retainer provides a shoulder against which the hand wheel can bear when rotated so as to enable it to move the camming member 58 toward the right in FIG. 2 along the shaft 14. The camming member is biased toward the left (FIG. 2) by four suitably seated compression springs 72, only one of which is illustrated in the drawing. Accordingly, the camming member will move axially along the hub 38 in either direction incident to suitable rotation of the hand wheel 24.

The flange 62 of the camming member 58 is provided with one of the arms 64 for each of the plungers, l arms being therefore provided in all. Each arm projects axially of the wheel to a position intermediate a pair of adjacent webs. The outer end of each arm is provided with a threaded hole which receives one end of a bolt 74 provided at its opposite end with one of the knobs 22. Captured between a pair of collars 76 on the bolt 74 for axial movement with the bolt as it rotates is a wedge 78, the nose of which rests upon and is supported by the outer peripheral edge of the arm 64. The wedge defines a camming surface 80 which is inclined relative to the axis of rotation of the wheel 12.

It will be appreciated that when a given knob 22 is rotated, the wedge 78 associated therewith is advanced'or retracted in one direction or the other along a path parallel to the axis of rotation of the wheel 12. This movement of the wedge occurs without the movement of any other wedge since each wedge is connected to a separate knob 22 on a separate arm 64. Each wedge is also moved along this same path by axial movement of the camming member 58, which in turn is effected by rotation of the hand wheel 24. However, when the hand wheelis rotated, all of the arms 64 and. hence, all of the wedges 78 are moved, and to an equal extend. Movement of the individual camming surface-80 of a wedge 78 tends to effect radial movement of a stop relative to the axis of the wheel 12, thereby effecting a repositioning of the stop, as hereinafter described.

The stop 20, seen best in FIG. 4, comprises a pedestal 82 and a post 84 supported thereby. The pedestal is of generally rectangular configuration and includes an inclined or canted lower surface 86. The stop is positioned with its inclined surface 86 resting upon the camming surface of a wedge 78 and, accordingly, extends radially outwardly away from the hub 38 of the wheel. A lug 88 projects laterally form each of opposite sides of the pedestal and each lug receives one end of a tension spring 90, the opposite end of each of which is anchored to the adjacent arm 64 by a bolt 92 (FIG. 1). Thus, the springs maintain the camming surface 80 of the wedge and the canted surface 86 of the pedestal in intimate engagement with one another. Movement of the wedge effected by rotation of either the knob 22 or the hand wheel 24 will therefore directly effect radial movement of the pedestal 82.

One end portion of the post 84 is threaded and is received into a suitable threaded hole in the upper surface of the pedestal, the post thereby also being positioned so as to extend radially outwardly from the hub 38 when the stop is properly positioned on a wedge 78. The outer or opposite end of the post 84 is not threaded and defines the shoulder 21 which is engaged by the plunger 18 and which limits the inward radial movement of the plunger. Although the position of the shoulder 21 relative to the axis of rotation of the wheel can be adjusted by merely rotating the post in its threaded hole, such adjustment is only made as a practical matter during the initial assembly of the device and, thereafter, adjustment is accomplished by the knob 22 and hand wheel 24 which are more accessible and which, in fact, can be manually turned while the wheel is rotating.

Each plunger 18 comprises two sections, namely, a head 94 and a driver 96. Each driver 96 is slidably carried on, and is caused to reciprocate relative to, one of the pedestals 82. Each head 94 is slidably carried on one of the drivers 96 and is additionally connected thereto by a pair of tension springs 98 (FIG. 3). When the driver is moved outwardly in the direction of the head, it engages the head and the two move as a unit. When the driver is moved inwardly away from the head, the tension springs 98 cause the head to move with the driver until the head engages the shoulder 2I of the post 84 of the pedestal 82, which limits inward radial movement of the head. The driver, however, can continue to move inwardly against the force of the springs. There is thus a lost motion connection between the driver and the plunger head.

More specifically, each driver 96 is slidably interconnected with a pedestal 82, each driver and pedestal being machined to provide cooperating tongues and grooves so oriented that reciprocal movement of the driver will be radial, i.e., along a path normal to the axis of rotation of the wheel 12. At its outer end, the driver is cut away, as at 99, to provide a seat for a fine threaded stop bolt I00 threaded into the driver and engageable with-the head 94. Although the stop bolt can be threaded inwardly of the driver to a greater or lesser degree for purposes of adjustment, it is as a practical matter adjusted only at the time of assembly of the device, as will be explained shortly.

The rearward face of the driver is cut away at each comer, indicated by the numeral 101 in FIG. 5, to provide a narrowed projection 102 which is of a size which enables it to fit into and slide freely through one of the slots 48 in the backwall 46. Mounted under the rearward face of the projection 102 by means of a pin 103 is a cam follower roller 104 which is received within a groove I06 (FIGS. 1 and 2) in a camming plate 108. The configuration of the groove 106 may be seen most clearly in FIG. I, where it will be noted that approximately one-half of the path defined by the groove (the left half in FIG. I) is noncircular. Thus, as the wheel rotates, the groove will cause the cam follower roller 104 and, hence, the driver 96, to move radially relative to the wheel so that the wheel reeiprocates within the slot 48.

The plunger head 94 is in the form of a generally rectangular block cut away centrally at its lower surface (FIG. 3) to receive the upper end of the driver 96 and to provide a surface engageable with the shoulder 21 of the stop 20. A groove is provided in the sidewalls )t' the head to receive a sealing ring I10, and the face of the head, which engages the product, is convex as viewed in elevation (FIG. 3) so as to have the same radius of curvature as the rim 42 of the wheel. Thus, the print being formed is of uniform depth even though slightly curved when initially formed: V

The head 94 and driver 96 are suitably ma'chin'ed to provide tongue and groove connections which permit free sliding movement between the two. The lower surface of the plunger head is provided with a pair of bolts 114 to-provide a connection for one end of each of the tension springs 98. The op- From the foregoing description, the operation of the device.

to the extent described, can be readily understood. Consider first a chamber which is approximately 35 to-the left of the lowest possible position, i.e., 35 to the left of a position directly beneath the axis of rotation of the wheel. The 'cam roller follower 104 .of the plunger carried within this chamber is then located at the point indicated by the letter A in FIG. 1.

With the cam follower roller so located, the plunger is e'xtended and remains so until the cam follower roller, moving counterclockwise, reaches a point B in the groove approximately to the right of a position vertically above the axis of rotation (FIG. 1). The plunger remains extended as the cam follower roller moves from point A to point B since that portion of the groove 106 in the camming plate 108 engaged by the cam follower roller 104 as the chamber moves between such positions is circular and concentric with the axis of rotation of the wheel; When the cam follower roller passes point B, moving counterclockwise, the chamber associated therewith is fully in communication with the interior of the hopper 26 and, in fact, the right hand edge of the chamber is well to he left of theinner right hand wall of the hopper (HO. 1). p

That portion of the groove 106 of the camming plate 108 which extends from point B to apoint C approximately 35 to the left of vertical and above axis of rotation is closer to the axis of rotation than the remainder of the groove. Accordingly, as the cam follower roller travels along that portion of the groove it is moved radially inwardly of the axis of rotation and, accordingly, draws the plungers 18 inwardly'of their chambers 16. Thismovement, coupled with the pressure of the material within the hopper, causes the material to enter the chamber and to fill the chamber, forming a print.

It is to be noted that the degree of inward radial movement of the cam followef roller relative to the axis of the wheel is fixed by the configuration of the groove 106. If the stroke determined by this groove is greater than that desired but the stop 20 has been adjusted to limit the plunger head to less than the maximum stroke; the plunger head' will be pulled inwardly within the chamber until the lower surface of the plunger engages the shoulder 21 of the stop 20. When this occurs, the plunger headcannot travel inwardly further and continued movement of the driver 96 will cause the tension springs 98 to be extended or stretched. As a practicalmatter, the maximum.

stroke of the cam follower roller is chosen so as to be greater than that desired so that the position of the shoulder21 will, in all cases, determine the extent of inward radialmovement of the plunger. 1 I

That portion of the groove which extends from point C to pointv A 35 to the left of vertical below the axis of rotation of the wheel, i.e., a span of ll0, gradually moves farther from the axis or rotation-of the wheel and,'in so'doing, moves the driver 96 and, hence, the plunger head 94 outwardly to eject the print. 1n the furthest position of the groove from the axis of rotation, the face of the plunger extends a very slight degree past the rim of the wheel, e.g., 1/32 of an inch','to insure that the face of the plunger will be engaged by the wire 30 {and wiped clean. The plunger remains generally in this extended.

position until it reaches the hopper 26, as previously set forth, except that it is retracted slightly, i.e., l/32 of an inch, before reaching the scraper 34 so that it can clear-the edge of I the scraper.

1 outer face of the plunger head In the initial assembly of the device, the posts 84 of each of the stops 20 are threaded into their pedestals 82 a uniform amount so that, for even the maximum desired stroke of the plungers, the lower surface of theplun'ger head 93 will engage the top of the'post or shoulder 21. Thus, there is always a positive control over the'stroke of the plungers.

The stop bolt 100, whichhas finer threads thah"tlie"post 84, is then adjustedso that withthe plungerlir'r the most extended position, i.e., when the cam follower roller" is in position A, the projects approximately 1/32 inch beyond the rim 42.

The device is then operated andlO sample prints are taken in sequence and marked to indicate the chamber in which they were formed. The "samples are then weighed individually. ldeally, all of the samples would weigh the same. If not, the knobs 22 of certain of the chambers are rotated until all chambers produce print of exactly the same weight. For example, if three of the chambers are found to produce a print of lesser weight than the remaining seven chambers, the knobs 22 of those three, chamberswould' berotated so as to withdraw the .correspondingwedges 78 slightly, thereby lowering the pedestals 82 and the shoulders 21 and enabling the plungers to penetrate further inwardly into their chambers. This has the effect of increasing the effectiv capacity of the three chambers, thereby increasing the size of the print.

If one of the printsis overweight, the knob 22 of that chamber would be rotated in the opposite direction. If all of the prints are of different weights, which is entirely possible when the device is init ially assembled, that print is chosen which is closest to the desired weight and the plungers of the chambers'producing the other nine prints are adjusted.

if; after all of the knobs'22 have been adjusted, it is found that all of the samples are of the same weight but all are, for

example, over the desiredweight, the hand wheelze isrotated slightly in a direction which will move th'c'arirming member 58 inwardly, thereby urging all of the wedges 78 axially-inwardly'and moving all [of the pedestals'82 andshoulde'rs 21 radially outwardly. This causesthe plungerheads 94 toengage the shoulders 21 sooner'and, thus, prevents them from moving as far into the chamber 16. The efi'ectivecapacity of the chambers is therefore less and the volume of each of the prints becomes smaller. in theevent that-the 'prints mean underweight, the hand wheel is rotated in the opposite direction, accomplishing the opposite results.

As a'practical matter, it will be appreciated that once all of the knobs 22 have been adjusted to cause the plungers to produce uniform prints, further adjustments -will rriade by means of the hand wheel '24. In other wo'rds,once the plungers have been initially adjusted so as to provide a chamber of uniform capacity, the'relationship will not change until the device is dismantled for cleaning. Thus, after initial adjustment', all of the plungers will be adjusted simultaneously, so as to compensate for changes in the composition of the product or to change over to a print of significantly different size. lt'is contemplated that the device will be dismantled daily for complete cleaning. It is possible that in the handling oftlie individual plungers during cleaning, the uniformity will be lost andminor adjustments will sembly.

Thehopper 26, only a portion of which is shown in FIG. 1,

includes a discharge chute 118, which is positioned above'the then be necessary upon reaswheel 12 and which is stationary and immovable, and the sealmg shoe 54 which is mounted on the lower end of the ichute and connected to thewheel in such a manner as to permit sliding movement of the wheel relative to the shoe; The shoe 54 is capable of slight shifting movement relative to the'chute so to obviate the necessity of a precise positioning of the hopper and wheel relative to each other.

More specifically, the chute 118 is in the form of a generally rectangular frame 122 open at the top and bottom which is adapted to be secured to the lower end of a fixed portion (not shown) of the hopper in such a manner that'it can be readily removed for cleaning. The 'enclwalls of thechutearecurved slightly from top to bottom in the direction of rotation of the wheel, i.e., toward the left in FIG. 1, so as to impart to the material a flow component in the direction of movement of the chambers as they pass beneath the hopper. A sealing ring 124 is provided in the outer wall of the chute adjacent its lower edge to provide a seal between the chute and shoe, as hereinafter described.

In the introduction of a flowable moist mass into the chambers, it has been noted that there is a tendency for the mass to stratify, i.e., to arrange itself in very thin layers within the chamber and print, a phenomenon which is noticeable in the prints when they are examined closely. To reduce this stratification in the instant device, the baffles are provided and extend from the top of the frame 122 downwardly in slightly curved paths past the lower edge of the frame and into the shoe 54. Each baffle is provided with a plurality of holes 128 (FIG. 2) arranged in rows with the holes of each row offset with respect to the holes of the rows adjacent to it.

The shoe 54 is also in the form of an open frame, the upper edge of which is suitably recessed to receive the lower edge of the chute in close fitting and intimate relation. The lower edge of the shoe is curved to conform to the curvature of the rim 42 of the wheel 12. A sealing gasket 130 is interposed between the lower surface of the shoe and the rim of the wheel to prevent material from escaping in the area between the shoe and the wheel.

The shoe is secured to the wheel so as to prevent the escape of material while permitting sliding movement between the wheel and the shoe. In this regard, a pair of clamps 132 are provided (FIG. 1), each clamp comprising an inverted U- shaped member'having a pair of legs 134 and a crossarm 136. One of the legs may be hingedly connected to the crossarm for ease of assembly but is otherwise maintained in rigid relation to the crossarm during use by a lock pin (not shown). Each arm is provided at its lower end with a pair of side-by-side rollers 140 which fit beneath the lip 52 of the rim 42 of the wheel. A clamping bolt 142 is threaded generally vertically through the crossarm 136 and engages the upper surface of the shoe. By virtue of the positions of the rollers 140 beneath the lip 52, the shoe is drawn downwardly into intimate engagement with the rim of the wheel.

As previously mentioned. the print is removed from the face of each plunger 18 by means of a wire 30 and allowed to fall onto a wrapper sheet carried by the conveyor 32. If for any reason, however, there is no wrapper sheet on the conveyor to receive the print, the wire is displaced and does not contact the print. The print, which in the case of cream cheese is tacky and adherent, therefore remains in contact with the plunger face and is carried by the wheel to a secondary position from which it is removed by the scraper blade 34 and allowed to drop onto the scrap conveyor 36.

More specifically, the wire 30 extends between a pair of arms (not shown individually) provided at one end of a bracket 144 keyed at its opposite end to a pin 146 for pivotal movement therewith (FIG. 1). The arms are spaced a sufficient distance from each other to enable them to flank the wheel and to provide the wire 30 with unobstructed access to the rim 42. When the bracket 144 is in its normal operating position, the wire 30 is located approximately 1/32 of an inch from the rim of the wheel and engages the faces of the plungers 18 as they pass, skimming or shaving the prints therefrom and allowing them to drop onto wrappers carried by the conveyor 32. In this'connection, the leading edge of each of the plungers is beveled slightly, as shown in the upper left portion of H6. 3, to guide the wire onto the face of the plunger.

The pin 146 has keyed to it a lever 148 which extends downwardly and is slotted at its lower end to receive a lug 150 connected to 'the piston of a double-acting hydraulic cylinder 152. Movement of the piston to the left in FlG. 1 causes the lever 148 to rotate in a clockwise direction and, accordingly, causes the bracket 144 to rotate in a clockwise direction as well, moving the wire 30 downwardly and away from the rim of the wheel. The wire is returned to its normal position by movement of the piston in the opposite direction. Operation of the hydraulic cylinder 152 is controlled by a photoelectric cell (not shown). if the light from a suitable light source is not reflected by a wrapper on the conveyor 32 at the proper time, the hydraulic cylinder will be actuated to retract the wire 30. The print will therefore not be removed from the plunger face and will remain attached thereto until it reaches the scraper Located at a position approximately removed from the position normally occupied by the wire 30 is the scraper 34 which is in the form of a generally flat blade having a notch (not shown) at one edge which is of such a width as to accommodate the rim 42 of the wheel. The notch is flanked by a pair of small ears 154 which project past the peripheral surface of the wheel and remove any material which may have accumulated on the side edge of the rim. The scraper is mounted for pivotal movement about a shaft 146 and is biased by a spring 158 in such a manner as to urge the notched edge of the scraper into engagement with the rim of the wheel. The scrap conveyor 36 is located beneath the scraper 34 and receives any prints removed from the wheel by the scraper.

An improved device has thus been described for accurately metering quantities of material, particularly moist flowable material such as cream cheese. While one particular structural embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, it should be apparent that various modifications may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention.

Various of the features of the invention are set forth in the following claims.

1 claim:

1. A device for dispensing metered quantities of material, said device comprising a wheel mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of said wheel, a plunger within each of said chambers, drive means connected to each of said plungers for effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, means defining a shoulder on said wheel adjacent each of said plungers engageable by said adjacent plunger to limit inward radial movement thereof, means for selectively repositioning each of said shoulders individually relative to the remaining shoulders and to said wheel so as to permit the extent of inward radial movement of each plunger to be selectively altered relative to that of the remaining plungers, and means for selectively repositioning all of said shoulders simultaneously so as to simultaneously alter the extent of inward movement of all of the plungers.

2. A device in accordance with claim 1, wherein said means for selectively repositioning each of said shoulders individually is accessible for manual adjustment as the wheel rotates at operational speeds.

3. A device in accordance with claim 1, wherein said means for selectively repositioning all of said shoulders simultaneously is accessible for manual adjustment as the wheel rotates at operational speeds.

4. A'device in accordance with claim 1 in which each of said shoulder-defining means is movable along a radially extending path toward and away from the axis of rotation of said wheel and includes a surface inclined relative to said path and said means for selectively repositioning each of said shoulders individually includes adjusting elements each engageable with said inclined surface of a different one of said shoulder-defining means and movable in a direction transverse to said radial path of movement of the associated shoulder-defining means, means for maintaining each of said adjusting elements in engagement with the associated one of said inclined surfaces and means for effecting selective incremental movement of each of said adjusting elements for effecting movement of each of said shoulder-defining means along its radial path.

5. A device in accordance with claim 4, in which selective incremental movement of each of said adjusting elements is effected by rotation of a threaded shaft provided for each element.

" 6. A device in accordance with claim I, in which each of said shoulderadefining means is movable along a radially extending path toward and away from the axisof rotation of said .wheel and includes a surfaceinclined relative to the path and said means for selectively repositioning all of said shoulderdefining means includes adjusting elements engageable with said inclined surfaces of said shoulder-defining means and movable in a direction transverse to said radial paths of movement of the shoulder-defining means, means for maintaining all of said adjusting elements in engagement with said inclined surfaces of said shoulder-defining means, and means for effecting simultaneous and uniform incremental movement of all of said adjusting elements to move each of said shoulderdefining means along its path.

7. A device in accordance with claim 6, wherein selective simultaneous and uniform incremental movement of all of said adjusting elements is effected by rotation of a single threade member about the axis of rotation of said wheel.

, 8. A device for dispensing metered quantities of material, said device comprising a wheel mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of said wheel, a plunger within each of said chambers, drive means connected to each of said plungers for 1.1. A device in accordance with claim 10, wherein said clamp also includes a memberfor engaging said shoe and apsequentially withdrawing said plunger radially inwardly of said effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, means defining a shoulder on said adjacent plunger to limit inward radial movement thereof, and means for selectively repositioning each of said shoulders individually relative to the remaining shoulders and to said wheel so as to permit the extent of inward radial movement of g each plunger to be selectively altered relative to that of the chambers, drive means for effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, means providing a lost motion connection between each plunger and said drive means, means defining a shoulder on said wheel associated with each of said plungers for limiting the extent of inward movement of each plunger relative to the periphery of said wheel, and means for selectively adjusting the positions of all of said shoulders simultaneously so as to alter the extent of inward movement of all of the plungers, each of said drive means comprising a cam follower mounted on said wheel for reciprocal movement radially of saidwheel and each of said plungers comprising a head portion reciprocally mounted on .said wheel and connected to said cam follower by a tension spring.

10. A device for dispensing metered quantities of material, said device comprising a wheel mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of saidwheel, said wheel having a lip adjacent the rim of the wheel and said lip defining an inwardly facing cylindrical surface, a plunger within each of said chambers, drive means connected to each of said plungers for effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, a stationary hopper positioned adjacent the periphery of said wheel in communication with each of said chambers as they pass in proximity to said hopper, said hopper including a shoe formed to provide a surface shaped to intimately engage the rim of said wheel, and means clamping said shoe to said wheel to insure an intimate engagement between the said surfaceof said shoe and the rim of said wheel, said clamping means including roller means engageable with said cylindrical surface of said lip.

wheel so as to at least partially vacate each of said chambers, means for filling each of said chambers with said material when said chamber is vacated, means for sequentially extending each of said plungers radially outwardly after the chamber has been filled so as to place said plunger face in close proximity to the rim of said wheel, means for skimming the material from the face of the plunger at a discharge station while the plunger is extended, and selectively actuable means for displacing said skimming means so that the material is not removed from said plunger face at said discharge station.

13. The device of claim 12, wherein said plunger face is disposed outwardly beyond the rim of said wheel when said plunger is extended at said discharge station and said skimming means extends transversely of and closely adjacent said rim at said discharge station to engage said face of each of said plungers outwardly beyond the wheel rim to skim material from the plunger face while the plunger is extended at the station.

14. A device in accordance with claim 13, in which said means for skimming the material from said plunger faces comprises a wire.

15. A device in accordance with claim 12 wherein means are provided for positioning a wrapper at said discharge station to receive material skimmed from a plunger face, wherein means are provided for anticipating whether there will be a material skimmed from a plunger face at said discharge station.

generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of said wheel, a plunger within each of said chambers, drive means connected to each of said plungers for effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, a stationary hopper positioned adjacent the peripheryof said wheel in communication with each of said chambers as they pass in proximity to said hopper, means associated with said hopper for causing material therein to be transferred from said hopper to chambers in communication therewith, and means within said hopper for preventing stratification of the material entering said chambers, said means for preventing stratification including a plurality of haffles extending generally normal to the rim of said wheel but curved slightly from one end to the other in the direction of movement of the wheel rim.

19. A device in accordance with claim 18, wherein said baffles are perforated.

Column Column Column Column Column Column Column Patent No.

Inventor(s) UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE May 11, 1971 Dated Roland E. Miller line line line line line line line line line line defining-. Column 9,

said wheel adjacent each of said plungers engageable by.

line

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. Attesting Officer It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 1, lines 6-7 "subsequently ejected from the cavity at one location and" Column 1, Column 2 Column 2,

is shown twice.

50 "prings" should be prints-. 2 "AND" should be deleted.

46 "pring" should be print-.

31 "rotatably" should be rotatable-. 34 "he" should be the--.

4 "93" should be 94.

18 "print" should be prints-. 68 "as" should be inserted between 17 "146" should be l56.

2 "shoulderadefining" should-be shoulder- "so" "to" 26 after "means defining a shoulder on" insert Signed and sealed this 2nd day of November 1 971 ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Acting Commissioner of Patents FORM PO-IOSO (IO-69] L SCOMM-DC suave-Pas e u S GOVERNHENY "mums oFFlci 1969 0-556-134 

1. A device for dispensing metered quantities of material, said device comprising a wheel mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of said wheel, a plunger within each of said chambers, drive means connected to each of said plungers for effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, means defining a shoulder on said wheel adjacent each of said plungers engageable by said adjacent plunger to limit inward radial movement thereof, means for selectively repositioning each of said shoulders individually relative to the remaining shoulders and to said wheel so as to permit the extent of inward radial movement of each plunger to be selectively altered relative to that of the remaining plungers, and means for selectively repositioning all of said shoulders simultaneously so as to simultaneously alter the extent of inward movement of all of the plungers.
 2. A device in accordance with claim 1, wherein said means for selectively repositioning each of said shoulders individually is accessible for manual adjustment as the wheel rotates at operational speeds.
 3. A device in accordance with claim 1, wherein said means for selectively repositioning all of said shoulders simultaneously is accessible for manual adjustment as the wheel rotates at operational speeds.
 4. A device in accordance with claim 1 in which each of said shoulder-defining means is movable along a radially extending path toward and away from the axis of rotation of said wheel and includes a surface inclined relative to said path and said means for selectively repositioning each of said shoulders individually includes adjusting elements each engageable with said inclined surface of a different one of said shoulder-defining means and movable in a direction transverse to said radial path of movement of the associated shoulder-defining means, means for maintaining each of said adjusting elements in engagement with the associated one of said inclined surfaces and means for effecting selective incremental movement of each of said adjusting elements for effecting movement of each of said shoulder-defining means along its radial path.
 5. A device in accordance with claim 4, in which selective incremental movement of each of said adjusting elements is effected by rotation of a threaded shaft provided for each element.
 6. A device in accordance with claim 1, in which each of said shoulder-defining means is movable along a radially extending path toward and away from the axis of rotation of said wheel and includes a surface inclined relative to the path and said means for selectively repositioning all of said shoulder-defining means includes adjusting elements engageable with said inclined surfaces of said shoulder-defining means and movable in a direction transverse to said radial paths of movement of the shoulder-defining means, means for maintaining all of said adjusting elements in engagement with said inclined surfaces of said shoulder-defining means, and means for effecting simultaneous and uniform incremental movement of all of said adjusting elements to move each of said shoulder-defining means along its path.
 7. A device in accordance with claim 6, wherein selective simultaneous and uniform incremental movement of all of said adjusting elements is effected by rotation of a single threaded member about the axis of rotation of said wheel.
 8. A device for dispensing metered quantities of material, said device comprising a wheel mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of said wheel, a plunger within each of said chambers, drive means connected to each of said plungers for effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, means defining a shoulder on said adjacent plunger to limit inward radial movement thereof, and means for selectively repositioning each of said shoulders individually relative to the remaining shoulders and to said wheel so as to permit the extent of inward radial movement of each plunger to be selectively altered relative to that of the remaining plungers, each of said drive means comprising a cam follower mounted on said wheel for reciprocal movement radially of said wheel and each of said plungers comprising a head portion reciprocally mounted on said wheel and connected to said cam follower by a tension spring.
 9. A device for dispensing metered quantities of material, said device comprising a wheel mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of said wheel, a plunger within each of said chambers, drive means for effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, means providing a lost motion connection between each plunger and said drive means, means defining a shoulder on said wheel associated with each of said plungers for limiting the extent of inward movement of each plunger relative to the periphery of said wheel, and means for selectively adjusting the positions of all of said shoulders simultaneously so as to alter the extent of inward movement of all of the plungers, each of said drive means comprising a cam follower mounted on said wheel for reciprocal movement radially of said wheel and each of said plungers comprising a head portion reciprocally mounted on said wheel and connected to said cam follower by a tension spring.
 10. A device for dispensing metered quantities of material, said device comprising a wheel mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of said wheel, said wheel having a lip adjacent the rim of the wheel and said lip defining an inwardly facing cylindrical surface, a plunger within each of said chambers, drive means connected to each of said plungers for effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, a stationary hopper positioned adjacent the periphery of said wheel in communication with each of said chambers as they pass in proximity to said hopper, said hopper including a shoe formed to provide a surface shaped to intimately engage the rim of said wheel, and means clamping said shoe to said wheel to insure an intimate engagement between the said surface of said shoe and the rim of said wheel, said clamping means including roller means engageable with said cylindrical surface of said lip.
 11. A device in accordance with claim 10, wherein said clamp also includes a member for engaging said shoe and applying a force thereto effective to urge said shoe in the direction of said roller means and, hence, in the direction of the lip of said wheel.
 12. A device for dispensing metered quantities of material, said device comprising a wheel mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphEry of said wheel, a plunger within each of said chambers, each of said plungers having a plunger face defining a wall of a chamber when the chamber is vacated, means for sequentially withdrawing said plunger radially inwardly of said wheel so as to at least partially vacate each of said chambers, means for filling each of said chambers with said material when said chamber is vacated, means for sequentially extending each of said plungers radially outwardly after the chamber has been filled so as to place said plunger face in close proximity to the rim of said wheel, means for skimming the material from the face of the plunger at a discharge station while the plunger is extended, and selectively actuable means for displacing said skimming means so that the material is not removed from said plunger face at said discharge station.
 13. The device of claim 12, wherein said plunger face is disposed outwardly beyond the rim of said wheel when said plunger is extended at said discharge station and said skimming means extends transversely of and closely adjacent said rim at said discharge station to engage said face of each of said plungers outwardly beyond the wheel rim to skim material from the plunger face while the plunger is extended at the station.
 14. A device in accordance with claim 13, in which said means for skimming the material from said plunger faces comprises a wire.
 15. A device in accordance with claim 12 wherein means are provided for positioning a wrapper at said discharge station to receive material skimmed from a plunger face, wherein means are provided for anticipating whether there will be a properly positioned wrapper to receive material skimmed from a given plunger face when it arrives at said discharge station, and wherein means are provided interconnecting said sensing means and said displacing means so as to actuate said displacing means and displace said skimming means when there will be no properly positioned wrapper to receive material skimmed from a plunger face at said discharge station.
 16. A device in accordance with claim 15, wherein means are provided at a secondary removal station spaced circumferentially from said discharge station for scraping the material from the plunger face at said latter station.
 17. A device in accordance with claim 16, wherein a conveyor is provided at said secondary removal station to receive material scraped from a plunger face at said station.
 18. A device for dispensing metered quantities of material, said device comprising a wheel mounted for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, means on said wheel defining circumferentially spaced chambers extending radially inwardly from the periphery of said wheel, a plunger within each of said chambers, drive means connected to each of said plungers for effecting reciprocal movement of each of said plungers within its chamber, a stationary hopper positioned adjacent the periphery of said wheel in communication with each of said chambers as they pass in proximity to said hopper, means associated with said hopper for causing material therein to be transferred from said hopper to chambers in communication therewith, and means within said hopper for preventing stratification of the material entering said chambers, said means for preventing stratification including a plurality of baffles extending generally normal to the rim of said wheel but curved slightly from one end to the other in the direction of movement of the wheel rim.
 19. A device in accordance with claim 18, wherein said baffles are perforated. 